1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a system operating under a Web environment and a method of controlling the same and to a processing method of enabling to know a job status on a Web browser. More particularly, the present invention relates to a print server processing method of enabling to know a job status on a Web browser in a print system, which prints under a Web environment.
2. Description of the Related Art
SaaS (Software as a Service), which provides a software function as a service on a network, has become widespread. In addition to SaaS, a thin client that makes only a browser run on a PC (Personal Computer) is also expected to become widespread. In SaaS, it is unnecessary to install applications in a client PC. Introducing a thin client is very advantageous for a user because, for example, it reduces the management cost of software to be distributed to clients and prevents information leakage by obviating the needs for storing data in a client environment. SaaS and the client environment where only a browser runs are services on a WWW (World Wide Web) platform. There is no doubt that future services will be provided to run on the WWW platform.
Under these circumstances, response to a Web print service for providing a print service on the WWW platform, which is one of application examples of SaaS, is a very important problem for a print system. Especially, there is a problem of how to notify a client environment where only a Web browser runs of the status of a print job.
Some conventional print management applications can display a pop-up in the client environment in case of a print error during job printing, thereby notifying the user of the print error (for example, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2004-054909). There also exist applications that judge, before a job is sent to a printer, whether the printer can process the content file. If the file can not be processed, an error is displayed on the Web browser in the client environment (for example, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2005-004328).
However, in the browser-based environment, software other than the browser does not run on the client PC. In Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2004-054909, software installed in the client environment acquires printer information. Hence, it is impossible to notify the user of the printer status in the environment including only the browser. In Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2005-004328, an error notification representing that the printer cannot print can be output before printing. However, if an error has occurred in a job during printing, no error notification can be output.